Customer Reviews

The Greatest Skating Race: A World War II Story from the Netherlands

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Louise Borden has added another little known story to her collection of historical fiction. In the year 1941, Holland has been under Nazi control for a year. Ten year old Piet dreams of following in the footsteps of his hero, Piiim Mulier the skater who first achieved Elfstedentocht, the Eleven Towns Race.

When a family friend is taken into German custody Piet's grandfather asks the boy to take the threatened family's children, down the frozen canals, to safety across the border to Brugge, Belguim. They are hoping three children skating down the canals will not attact the attention of the German troops. The journey becomes Piet's Elfstedentocht. The cold, the exhaustion, the fear and the natural exuberance of the children are beautifully shared in this story.

Niki Daly's illustrations have an old fashioned feel. Daly has caught the feeling of the Dutch winter sky and the era with muted colors.

Interesting notes on the Elfstedentocht are included along with pronounciations of the Dutch words. Another wonderful book about Holland during WWII is "Forging Freedom" by Hudson Talbott. These two titles would work well together.

Parents often find themselves amazed at the sheer number of WWII picture books available to kids today. Why the year 2004 alone was privy to such fabulous tomes as, "The Cats of Krasinski Square", by Karen Hesse and "The Greatest Skating Race", by Louise Borden. Usually such picture books are examinations of the Holocaust and/or Jewish oppression. Borden's book, however, takes an entirely different route. Concentrating on the German occupation in the Netherlands, the book shows how resistance and bravery can flower in children when the need is great enough. Though this book is far too lengthy and involved to seriously interest any child under the age of eight, I'd still recommend it to those tykes that can maintain their interest through a riveting race against time.

Piet (pronounced "pete") has a single burning obsession that has yet to be thoroughly quenched. He loves to skate. This is not particularly peculiar in the Netherlands, of course. After all, he comes from a long line of skate artisans and often he traverses the many canals that run through his town. But Piet's real hope is to someday compete in the difficult Elfstedentocht race held in Friesland when the winters are cold enough. Piet's hero, Pim Mulier, once completed the 200 kilometer (roughly 125 mile) course in just 12 hours and 55 minutes and Piet's raring to do the same. But it's the second winter into WWII and the Netherlands are under German occupation. What's worse, a father of two kids in Piet's school was recently arrested by the Germans for passing on information to the British. This places the man's children in dire peril and their only hope is to somehow escape over the border to Belgium and then into the town of Brugge to safety. But how could two such children be able to find their way? That's where Piet comes in. With his trusty red notebook in hand, Piet and the kids must escape and elude the Germans and make it to their safehouse in the course of a single day over 12 kilometers. If they're strong enough.

Though looking like a picture book, this is an in-depth read more appropriate for kids reading early chapter titles. In the course of the narrative, author Louise Borden spots the text with factual information in the form of maps, pronunciation guides (very useful when you have words like, "Elfstedentocht" to contend with), and info on the great Friesland race as well as a history of skating itself. It's enough to make your head spin. And then, to top it all off, there's the story. Borden cleverly sucks you into the action. It did strike me as a little odd that in this book the adults would place Piet in such danger when a grown-up probably could've have helped the two children instead. Then again, maybe they figured that kids would attract less attention. Whatever the reason, Piet's journey is realistic. He comes up with an ingenious way to keep the seven-year-old from tiring too much and also for keeping the children's spirits up. After reading the book, you may never want to skate yourself but you're happy watching others do it here.

The illustrations by Niki Daly are nicely detailed as watercolors go but the real hero here is the text. Kids who like that classic piece of children's literature, "Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates" by Patricia Lauber will find a similar tale in "The Greatest Skating Race". Purchase only for those advanced readers that won't be turned off by a little historical fiction. A great WWII picture book for a select audience.

My 4-year-old son picked this book out at the library (I think he was attracted by the cover picture of children ice skating, a hobby he too enjoys). When I read it to him at home, I was surprised at how engaging it was for me, being that it is a book written for a younger audience. The author certainly researched her subject matter. My son and I both learned a great deal about the Netherlands in the early 1940s, and the history of ice skating. The Elfstedentocht, the speed skating race in the northern province of Friesland, I had never heard of before reading this book. Maybe one day my son will travel to the land of his ancestors and compete in this race! This excellent book could certainly inspire an interest in a venture of that nature. I certainly would recommend this book, both for its content, and the captivating artwork.

I purchased this for my 2nd grade granddaughter to read from her list of summer reading books. Turned out to be a 4th grade level, but she was definitely up to it! Wonderful book! Excellent adventure from WWII. She was enthralled and I was, too! Recommend this one highly!

Ever since I read that nonsensical children's book "Hans Brinker and the Silver Skates" by Mary Mapes Dodge, I am very leary of US authors writing historical novels about other countries; I don't even bother to open them.
This book is, on the other hand, is wonderful!
I have three relatives who rode the Elfstedentocht. Because I inherited the Elfstedentocht medals ("kruisjes") of my aunt's 3 tours and one from my grandmother, I find myself often explaining the uniqueness, severity and hardship (my aunt lost her front teeths; my grandmother froze her toes in 1909)of this race to my English speaking grandchildren, I ordered this book.
In addition to writing a nice story to go along with facts, Louise Borden has done an outstanding job of reviewing this incredible race and explaining the Dutch obssession with speed skating. This winter (2010-2011) we almost had another Elfstentocht. It was not to be. Hopefully next winter, or, as they say in Friesland "It sil heve!" (It shall happen!).
Jitske Bergman

And if so, how MUCH of it is true.

This is a heroic story, regardless of how real it is, of how a boy skated his friends to safety from Holland during WWII. The danger is a bit understated, so this book is suitable for more sensitive children.

This was a beautiful book. Compelling, full of history and emotion. The way the author showed how celebrities and ordinary folk alike have extraordinary strength was masterful. The young boy Piet is inspired to have great courage by stories of Pim Mulier, the famous skater of the Elfstedentocht (Eleven Towns Race). I would compare this to Lois Lowry's Number the Stars, which is for older children certainly, but also about young people being much braver than they thought they could be while caught up in the tragedy of World War II.